The present invention concerns a user interface with individually configurable panel interfaces for use in a computer system.
In a computer systems such as personal computers, there is a continual search to provide a user simple and intuitive interfaces to computer applications and resources. For example, many personal computers use the Microsoft Windows operating system, available from Microsoft Corporation having a business address of One Microsoft Way, Redmond, Wash. 98052.
Various utilities have been designed to run with the Microsoft Windows operating system. These include, for example, Amish Utilities available from Amish Software, Inc., having a business address of 541 Cowper Street, Suite A, Palo Alto, Calif. 94301, the KwikInfo utility available from PC-Kwik Corporation having a business address of 15100 SW Koll Parkway, Beaverton, Oreg. 97006, the PowerLauncher utility available from hDC Computer Corporation, having a business address of 6742 185th Ave NE, Redmond Wash. 98052, the SideBar utility available from Paper Software, Inc., having a business address of P.O. Box 567 New Paltz, N.Y. 12561, the Rooms for Windows utility available from Xerox Corporation, XSoft Production Education, having a business address of 3400 Hillview Avenue, Palo Alto, Calif. 94303, the Wide Angle utility available from Attitash, having a business address of 20 Trafalgar Square, Nashua, N.H. 03063, the Squeegee utility available from ICOM Simulations, Inc., having a business address of 648, S. Wheeling Road, Wheeling, Ill. 60090, the SYSTEM INFO utility available from Symantec, as part of the Norton Desktop for Windows, and the Gallery View utility available from Abacist Software Company. The above-described utilities variously implement functionality for launching programs, printing, viewing screens and showing virtual screens.